GoPro Camera

One of the big improvements I anticipate ours will have over projects done 3-4 years ago is the quality of video we should receive. The relatively new GoPro series of cameras gives absolutely stunning HD video in a camera that weighs only a few ounces.

There was no question that we would purchase a GoPro, but there was some flexibility in which model we bought. Because of our generous budget, this was the one area we splurged and got the top of the line GoPro Hero3+ Black. In addition to having stellar quality video, it also has helpful features for testing purposes like a WiFi remote, and the ability to use your smartphone to control the GoPro via WiFi and even see what it is recording.

Here were our minimal requirements:

The battery had to last at least up to the balloon burst, and preferably for the whole trip. Minimum we need 2.5 hrs, preferably 3 hrs record time.

We purchased a 64gb SD card. Make sure it is a high quality class 10 card from a reputable dealer. This should be more than sufficient recording space.

We also want to use the mode that will record HD video while periodically taking an HD picture every 60 seconds.

The default battery doesn’t last super long, so we purchased a GoPro Backpac which is a battery extender which increases battery life. Note: the Bacpac doesn’t exactly double the battery life but gets fairly close. Also, you don’t need the LCD backpack — just this regular Bacpac.

One of our students took responsibility for finding the appropriate GoPro settings that will achieve our goals and maximize video quality. We settled on 720p video settings at a 60fps recording rate. During testing we obtained right at 3 hours record time. This number may decrease a little in the cold upper atmosphere, but should still be more than sufficient.

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Our HAB Project

This site encompasses every area of our project to launch a high altitude weather balloon (HAB) 19 miles above the earth while capturing HD video. Each post details one area of the project. If you want to simply see the end results, find the posts close to the top of the page. If you are looking to do your own HAB project then start at the bottom and work your way up!

**Special thanks to the Midlands Technical College Foundation for fully funding our project. Without their support this project would not have been possible.**